etoks21

Agree with all you said except the second sentence.

Is a 16 year-old kissing/boinking a 19 year-old "problematic?" And what do you mean exactly when you say "problematic?" Is it so only IRL or also if it's a fictional representation of such? Because 16 year-olds willingly kiss older people every day and I don't see many of those kisses as "problematic" at all. Unless someone's being physically forced, blackmailed, deliberately abused, etc. I generally think of it as none of my business. I know very mature 16 year-olds and several extremely immature 25 year-olds. These arbitrary number-thresholds are silly.

But the main problem in this thread and many others is that certain MDLers see two actors IMPLYING through ACTING OUT that they are having sex as the same thing as you know, having sex. It's absurd.

The biggest problem in the world is people of various ages KILLING each other, not KISSING each other. But you'll never see these weirdos in comments whining about portrayals of murder in live-action, fictional storytelling.

Interesting. I feel it strongly.

Do you know if two teens below the age of 16 can consent to do it with each other? If not, then that's silly. No stupid, interfering law is going to stop horny teens from boffing each other.

The young Kazuma is a terrible actor. His crying scene was excruciatingly bad.

Did you know that a Manga is NOT a script for the live-action adaptation? It is a SOURCE and anything about it can be changed as the story is retold.

Why would Kazuma cry over "taking" Ren's first time? Ren is no innocent. He was headed for the hotel with another dude. I like my interpretation better than yours. :D

THEY ARE NOT "DOING IT!"
They are ACTORS.
Actors PRETEND to do lots of stuff that's not actually happening.

Thing is, those messy human activities are what make for great drama. If everything was ironed out and perfect in the relationship, there would be no dramatic tension and nowhere to go with the story. My take on the crying was that he was deeply moved by the experience of having sex with Ren, with whom he is clearly in love. He wasn't crying out of regret, he was crying out of the intensity of what just happened between them which was a beautiful thing for him.

The age of consent in Japan is 13. Google is your friend.
Most U.S. states have 16 as the age of consent.

Thing is, none of that matters. This is a fictional story and the actors are doing a thing called "acting." They did NOT have sex IRL, on the set. You know this, yes? It is not against the law to PRETEND that two twelve year-olds had sex, if that were in the script. It is against the law for them to ACTUALLY have sex, which they did not, nor was anything the least bit graphic shown.

Good Lord.

Are 14 year-olds not allowed to kiss? What planet are you on?

What did they do that has you in knots? They kissed and hugged and ACTED. Get over it. It's fictional story-telling and the fact you're beside yourself with outrage at what the acting/directing caused you to imagine in your head is clear evidence the actors and director did a great job.

Stop watching.

BINGO.

LOTS of things that happen IRL are a small drop in the pond of life. That's part of what makes them so interesting. Who wants to see only scenarios that are extremely common and thus boring.

However, it is important to note that you actually SAW very little. You saw two teens kiss and pretend to be in a sexual situation. Nothing the least bit explicit was shown. You made the rest up in your head, as intended.

Since you're so "upset" by this show, I assume you will stop watching, yes?

How was two teens having sex "weird?" How was it "disturbing?" NOTHING was "literally" shown. You saw NO ONE having sex. You saw two actors acting. The rest you made up in your head, as you were intended to do. A visual reference to something as important to the plot as you are talking about is far more impactful than just talking about it in the aftermath.

If you can't handle where this show is going, don't watch.

It's mostly just you. Teenagers have been having sex for thousands of years.

Wow. My estimation of this series has risen dramatically from episode 1 to episode 3.
I am impressed to see a BL that is directly portraying a gay "friends-with-benefits" relationship and the complicated dynamics that can arise in such a situation.

Furthermore, the exploration of sexual/personal dynamics and potentially sexual harassment in the workplace is interesting and well-played so far, though there is MUCH left to learn.

I have never been able to separate my body from my heart/head in sexual situations so I learned long ago that FWB relationships don't work for me. But MANY other gay men claim to be fine with it, and who am I to say they're being dishonest?

I like that we see Kazuma obviously wanting much more from the relationship but playing it cool in hopes that Ren will come around, while Ren seems to be fine with a FWB arrangement, but by the end of episode 3 something else seems to be happening inside him. The look on Ren's face when he grabbed Kazuma's hand near the end said it all. He doesn't want to just "do it." He wants to "make love," even if he insists that's not true.

It's intriguing that when they are "doing it," Ren insists on hiding his face and not speaking. That's pretty indicative of some serious psychological issues so I look forward to learning what that's all about.

To people here all agog at seeing two 15 year-old actors exchange a tame kiss, get a grip. They are above the age of consent. NOTHING even slightly explicit is shown or even indicated in their hookup scene. This is called "acting" and "directing" and "filming," the adroit combination of which can make it appear as though all kinds of things have happened when in reality the viewer's mind is receiving a few bits of information and filling in the huge gaps between them to come up with an assumption that certain activities have taken place.

This is called "live-action fictional story-telling." Humans have been doing it for centuries.

But it is totally unsurprising to see the usual BL prudes wringing their hands as they collapse onto their fainting couches here at the suggestion that teenagers have sex. I knew that's part of what I'd see in comments after episode 3 and I can't say I don't get a kick out of the predictable, sex-negative acting-out. It's as amusing as it is eye-rolling.

lol It's called "acting." Nothing even the tiniest bit explicit was shown. You saw two 15 year-old TEENAGERS exchange a fairly chaste kiss. Is it news to you that 15 year-olds kiss in real life? Furthermore, both actors are above the age of sexual consent, so what is the problem?

Fifteen year-olds kissing in middle school and high school plays is nothing unusual. And 15 year-olds kissing IRL happens all the time. So again, where is the problem?

If you can't handle the vibe of two cute teens kissing, then you simply should stop watching the show. This isn't complicated.

Look in a mirror. Your comment is almost as long as my "essay." lol

My comment was ABOUT your comment, so it kind of makes sense I would reply to your comment, right? No?

But it's unsurprising that someone who comes unglued because another commenter responds to their comment would have such a loose grip on reality.

Consider yourself reported to the mods for the "dumb f**k." I don't let that sort of thing slide anymore.

TERRIBLE.

Of all the millions of BLs I have watched from beginning to end, the storyline of this one is among the worst. Yutaro is ridiculously unappealing as a romantic lead, and his character here was as incoherent as he was a little bitch, right up to the bitter end. The ONLY reason I kept watching is Kondo Shori. Sexy, charismatic and talented. I hope to see him paired with a worthy partner in another romance soon...hopefully a gay-as-f**k one.

The "naked dining" concept, and the promise of at least one butt shot of Shori per episode, was completely forgotten, or it was a red herring from the start, who knows?

There was no kiss, though one was teased for several episodes, but I consider that a blessing for Shori's sake.

I'd list all the things wrong with this mess but there'd be no room for comments from others.

PATHETIC.

1/10

ODT is slightly less awful than ND, but not much.

I agree completely. Kondo Shori is the only reason I did not drop this disaster. He's handsome, sexy, charismatic, and a good actor. I look forward to more from him too. Yutaro, on the other hand, has the romantic/sexual energy of an eggplant. If I never see him onscreen again it will be far too soon.